2. Software

  1. When is BIOS used, what is its function, and where is it located?

  2. What is an operating system?

    • What are the three main operating systems?

    • What are some mobile device operating systems?

    • What operating system runs on a Raspberry Pi?

    • Does an Arduino have an operating system?

      • the code that is loaded is a program Arduino calls a sketch ... there are two functions in every Arduino sketch = setup() and loop()

  3. What is “the shell”? What is a program you can use to access “the shell”?

    • “Simply put, the shell is a program that takes commands from the keyboard and gives them to the operating system to perform.” [http://linuxcommand.org/lc3_lts0010.php]

    • command line (Mac = Terminal; PC = Command Prompt)

      • Terminal (on a Mac)

        • navigate to folder or file (change directory or cd command)

          • cd to get back to your user folder

          • cd / to get to root)

          • ~ means you are in the user’s home folder

          • / means you are in the root of the hard drive

          • pwd provides the full path of the current directory you are in

        • afplay [filename] to play an audio file ... to stop command+c

        • see contents of a director (ls) = short for the word "list"

        • create a folder (mkdir “thisnewfolder”)

        • create a file (touch mytextfile.txt)

        • open an application from the Applications folder (open Dictionary.app)

        • open an application from anywhere (open -a Dictionary.app)

        • make the computer talk (say)

  4. Define software (use the following terms in your answer: algorithm, instructions).

  5. Define programming language (high-level) and machine language (low-level).

  6. Describe the difference between “open” and “proprietary” file formats and how that plays into “digital obsolescence.”

  7. When working in an application, when do you save your work?

  8. What is Artificial Intelligence (AI)?

  9. What are some tips for presenting using slide software like PowerPoint?

    • Use a short URL. If using Google Slides, “share” the presentation publicly and create a short URL you can memorize (bit.ly, tiny.cc, etc.) so you can walk up and present without needing to log into Google

    • No more than six words on a slide. EVER. There is no presentation so complex that this rule needs to be broken. (Seth Godin)

      • you may actually have to break this rule ... but challenge yourself to stick to this rule

    • Make one point per slide. Make your point, allow your audience to digest it, then move on together in sync with them. Several points on a slide inevitably result in your audience moving at a different pace to you, because they can only listen and read for a few short seconds. Why be in conflict with your presentation materials when you don't have to? Give each key message room to breathe. (Ned Potter)

    • No more bullets. Bullet points ruin slides. They're fine for documents, but you're not making a document in PowerPoint. (Ned Potter)

    • No dissolves, spins or other transitions.

    • Use professional stock photo images. (Seth Godin)

      • don't use low resolution images

      • Make slides that reinforce your words, not repeat them. Create slides that demonstrate, with emotional proof, that what you’re saying is true not just accurate. Talking about pollution in Houston? Instead of giving me four bullet points of EPA data, why not read me the stats but show me a photo of a bunch of dead birds, some smog and even a diseased lung? This is cheating! It’s unfair! It works. (Seth Godin)

    • Big fresh fonts. Font size 24 is the absolute minimum you should ever use in slides. If you need more you're trying to fit too much on one slide. Either ditch some text or cascade it across two slides. Non-standard fonts (which is to say, fonts which don't appear in the Office Suite) can, if chosen carefully, increase the impact of your presentation. Typography is underrated. (Ned Potter)

    • Make headings small because larger fonts draw eyes away from the content of the page (David Phillips' “How to Avoid Death by PowerPoint")

    • Don’t hand out print-outs of your slides. They don’t work without you there.

      • Create a written document. A leave-behind. Put in as many footnotes or details as you like. Then, when you start your presentation, tell the audience that you’re going to give them all the details of your presentation after it’s over, and they don’t have to write down everything you say. Remember, the presentation is to make an emotional sale. The document is the proof that helps the intellectuals in your audience accept the idea that you’ve sold them on emotionally. IMPORTANT: Don’t hand out the written stuff at the beginning! If you do, people will read the memo while you’re talking and ignore you. Instead, your goal is to get them to sit back, trust you and take in the emotional and intellectual points of your presentation. (Seth Godin)

    • Make yourself cue cards. Don’t put them on the screen. Put them in your hand. Now, you can use the cue cards you made to make sure you’re saying what you came to say. (Seth Godin)

    • be proud of your presentation and confident in your ability to deliver it because you have packaged your content in a way you know will be clear, comprehendable, and easily retained

    • be proud of your presentation and confident in your ability to deliver it because you have prepared well

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